System for filling containers



E. w. BLEAM 2,330,862

Oct. 5, 1943.

SYSTEM FOR FILLING CONTAINERS 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 7, 1941 Q Q Q Z. V Y

v v INVENTOR Edgar Wfi/eam ATTORNEY Get. 5, 1943. r E. w. BLEAM Y SYSTEM .F'QR FILLING CONTA INERS Filed Aug. 7, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 K Iluumll lnnllllll 5 INVENTOR Edgar Wfileam ATTORNEY Oct. 5, 1943.

E. w. BLEAM I SYSTEM FOR FILLING CONTAINERS Filed Aug. '7, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 mvzmd Edgar W 19164772 W QQB ATTORNEY I 7 s R E N I A m w A G mm L L I WF F M E T s Y S Oct 5, 1943.

Filed Aug. 7, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR Edgar Wfl eam ATTORNEY E. \N. BLEA-M SYSTEM FOR FILLING CONTAINERS Get 5 343..

Filed Aug. '7, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 exd ens

INVENTOR m Ea'yarfI/fiiemrz ATTORNEY Oct. 5, 1943 E; w. BLEAM SYSTEM FOR FILLING CONTAINERS Filed Aug. '7, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 INVENTOR. Edyar Wfi eam 1%. a QQW ATTORNEY.

Eatented Oct. 5, 1943 Edgar W. Bleam, Philadelphia, Pa... assignor to Stokes and Smith Company, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application August 7, 1941, Serial No. 405,741

12 Claims.

My invention relates to systems for filling containers of paper, metal, glass, or other appropriate material and is particularly concerned with filling containers with powdered, materials such as cocoa, talcum. flour, spices, soap powder, milk powder, and the like, or with free-flowing granular materials such as salt, sugar, and the like, all for brevity herein generically termed powdered materials."

a In accordance with one aspect of my invention, a charge of powdered material is introduced into a container by an auger, or equivalent, rotating during withdrawal of air from the container so to ensure the container shall receiv and retain an accurately predetermined amount of the material, to ensure compactness or dense packing of the charge in the container, and to avoid the otherwise occurring escape of material with air forced out o! the container counter-curren through the incoming charge.

Further in accordance with another aspect of my invention, the aforesaid auger is rotated at constant speed for a fixed fraction. of the machine cycle with provision of means, such as, a variable speed transmission, ior changing the length or duration of the machine cycle so to vary or predetermine the amounts of filling received by the containers for successive cycles of the machine.

Further in accordance with my invention, before removal of the filled container, screenin through which gas, generally air, has been withdrawn from the container; is subjected to a reverse pufl of gas or air which clears the screen of powdered filling material clinging to it thus to return that material to the main body of filling in the container and to ensure proper exhaustion of i the next container.

In accordance with one form of my invention, the container during'filling is enclosed within a chamber, defined by relatively movable sealing members, within which the gas pressure is reduced during withdrawal of air from thecontainer so to avoid its collapse by atmospheric pressure.

In accordance with another form of my invention suited for filling of bags, the bag to be filled is received by a pocket through whose apertured wall suction is applied to hold the bag distended for reception of the charge. I

My invention further resides in the systems and in the features of construction and arrangement hereinafter described and claimed.

For an understanding of mydnvention and for the illustration of preferred forms thereof refer- I Fig. 1 is a perspective view ence is made to the accompanying drawings, in.

which:

of a complete filling machine. 1

Fig. 2, on enlarged scale and with parts broken away, shows in perspective the upper Part of the. machine showninFig. 1. Fig. 3, on enlarged scale and in perspective, shows parts concealed in Fig. 1 by a cover plate. Fig. 4, on enlarged scale and with parts broken away, illustrates the lower portion of the machine shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 5, partly in section, illustrates elements of the machine of Fig. 1 concerned with exhaustion of air from the containers. 3 Fig. 5A, in perspective, shows the filling head of Fig. 5 inverted for illustration of features of its construction.

e ryv1ew with parts-broken 1 y to show further details 01' construction or v the sealing head of Fig. 5A.

Fig. 6 is a front elevational view 01 valves and cam mechanism appearing in Fig. 5. I

Fig. 7 is stable or timing chart referred to in the description.

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary view illustrating a.

modification of the filling head shown in Fig. 5. Fig. 9 illustrates another-modified form oi filling head.

Fig. 10 is a perspective viewoi a has.

Fig. 11, partly in section, is a detail view f a modified form of filling head suited for filling of bags. I

Fig. 12, in section, is a fragmentary view illustrating another modified form of filling head.

Fig. 13 is a bottom plan view of the filling head of F18. 12.

Fig. 14, diagrammatically and in perspective,

shows significant elements of a full automatic filling machine embodying my invention.

In the particular embodiment 01' my invention shown in Fig. 1, the operator places the container C, exemplary of a can, jar, carton, or other container to be filled, upon the platform i below the open discharge end of the hopper 2 which contains the filling to be introduced into the container. The pedal 3 is then momentarily depressed to initiate a cycle of operation of the machine during which the platform i is elevated to bring the upper edge of the container 6 into sealing engagement with the under face 01' the suction head 4. While the container remains in elevated position with itsinterior thus isolated from atmosphere, air is withdrawn therefrom by the suction pump 5, or equivalent, whose connections to the suction head 4 include the hose 8 and control valves hereinafter discussed. During continued application of suction, filling is fed from hopper 2 through the tube 1 whose open, lower end, Fig. 5, for example, is in communication with I container.

After these operations have occurred, the platform I is automatically lowered to allow removal of the filled container C, so completing the cycle of operations of the machine. The operator then places another empty container uponplatform i and again momentarily depresses clutch pedal 3 to initiate another cycle of the filling machine. Referring for more detailed description of the machine to Figs. 2 and 3, the shaft 8 which intermittently drives the feed auger 3 extends upwardly through the table l within the enclosure afforded by one of'the side frames II. The gear l2, attached to the upper end of shaft 8, is connected to gear I 3. secured to the upper end of the auger shaft l4, through the intermediate gear il rotatable upon the stub shaft I. attached to and extending upwardly from the cross membe i1 extending between the side frames H.

The gear l8, rotatable in unison with gear i5, 7

is in mesh with gear ll secured to the upper end of sleeve 24, concentric with auger shaft l4 and to which is secured the agitator 2| provided to facilitate proper feed of powdered materials having strong tendency to pack.

By way of example, the speed of agitator 2| may be about 100 revolutions per minute where.- as the speed of the auger is materially higher, for example 700 revolutions per minute.

To adapt the machine for use with difierent powdered materials and for a wide range of sizes of containers to befilled, the auger 3 and its sleeve 1 are replaceable by other augers and sleeves of different sizes. To facilitate removal of the auger, its connection to shaft l4 may be effected, as appears in Fig. 2, by a pin and bayonet slotconnection.

The lower end of shaft 8 is connected,,as by coupling 22, Fig. 3, to the driven shaft 23 of the combined brake and clutch unit 24 interposed between shaft 8 and the continuously rotating shaft 28 to which is attached the bevel gear 28 in mesh with bevel gear 21 of the clutch 28. v

The yoke 28 for operating both the clutch 28 and the brake 30 is pivoted at I l to one of the side I frames ll of the machine. The lugs 32 of the yoke 28 are received by a groove in the sleeve 33 so that upon upward movement of the arm or yoke 28 the plates 28a, 28b'of the clutch 28, connected respectively to shaft 8 and to the continuously driven clutch element, are forced together into frictional driving engagement so to effect rotation of the feed auger 9; conversely, when the arm 22 is moved downwardly, the clutch plates are disengaged to disconnect shaft 23 from the auger 8 and the brake 30 is applied promptly to stop rotation of shaft 8.

The aforesaid movements of the control arm 23 are eflected by the cam 34 attached to shaft 38 which, as hereinafter appears, makes one revolution for each cycle of the machine. The cam follower 36, engaged by cam 34, is carried by bar 31 having a guide slot 38 through which shaft 35 passes and pivotally connected at 33 to the lever 40 supported by bracket 4i. The arm 40 is biased to its lowermost position by spring 42 connected between arm 40 and the hook 43 extending upwardly from the frame bracket 44 and preferably threaded to provide for adJustment of the spring tension.

The operating connection between arm 40 and the yoke 23 is afforded by a resilient link construction comprising the member 45 pivotally attached at its upper end to arm 40 and through the lower end of which slidably extends the rod 48, an extension of the member 41 pivotally mounted, as by pin 48, upon the yoke member 28, The spring 48, compressed between the lower end of member 48 and the abutment providedby washer 50 and nuts ll on the upper end of the rod 48, limits or determines the pressure applied to the clutch plates when the arm 28 is moved in one direction to force the clutch plates into engagement and determines the pressure applied to the brake when arm 29 is moved in reverse direction.

To suit the machine for filling containers differing substantially in size, the cam 34 may be replaceable by cams of suitably different angular extents, or as shown, the cam 34 may be made of twoor more segments, one attached to shaft 3!, and the other segment or segments adiustably attached as by bolt and slot connections to the first segment so to allow variation of the fraction of the cycle for which the members 28a, 28b of clutch 28 are in engagement with one another.

Referring to Fig. 4, to the cam shaft, 35 is attached the driven clutch member 52 upon which is pivotally mounted the clutch dog or pawl 53 biased by spring 54 toward engagement with the continuously rotating clutch member 55 attached to or integral with sprocket 58. When the pedal 3 is momentarily depressed to initiate a cycle of the machine, the latch 81, connected to treadle 3, as by link 58, is withdrawn from engagement with the clutch pawl 53 thus allowing the spring 34 to move the pawl into engagement with the continuously rotating clutch member 55. At the end ofthe cycle, one revolution of shaft 38, the pawl 53 re-engages the latch 81, which in the meantime has resumed its original position, and

by it is moved, in opposition to spring 54, out of engagement with the driving clutch member 55. The shaft 25 for driving the auger 9 through clutch 24 is driven continuously and at constant,

speed, 'as by motor 59 through the driving connection comprising pulley 80, belt BI and pulley 82, whereas the shaft 35 is operated only intermittently, one revolution for each depression of the pedal 3, and at a speed which may be smoothly and finely varied, as by the Reeves-drive 63, Fig, 1, or equivalent speed-conversion mechanism. interposed between the one-cycle clutch 53, 55 and the continuously rotating shaft 25. Changing the ratio of the speeds of shaft 25 and the driven clutch member 55 increases or decreases the amount of filling fed to a container during a cycle of the machine; the rate of feed, since change of aforesaid ratio does not affect the speed of the auger 8, is constant and the fraction of the cycle for which the clutch 24 is en aged is constant for all settings of Reeves-drive 83 but by changing the speed-ratio of the Reeves-drive, the time elapsing from start to finish of each cycle is belt 69 further forces apart the driving cones 59 in opposition to a biasing spring, not shown, so to .reduce the ratio between the speeds of shaft and sprocket 14 on shaft 01 respectively. Conversely as the arm 85 is raised the driving cones move closer together, effectively increasing the diameter of the driving pulley for belt 68 and so increasing the speed of rotation of clutch member 55.

This adjustment, which can be effected whenever necessary or desirable without interruption of operation of the machine, provides for very precise regulation of the amount of filling fed from the hopper for each cycle of the machine.

The driven shaft of the speed-conversion mechanism 08 may be coupled to shaft in any suitable manner, as by sprockets II, I2 attached to shafts 25 and I0 respectively and connected by the chain I3. Similarly the driving shaft 51 of the speed-conversion mechanism may be provided with a sprocket I4 coupled to sprocket 55 of the one-cycle clutch 53, 55 by the chain I5.

The cam 10, Figs. -1-6, for controlling the reciprocation of the containerfl-supporting platform I is carried by the one-cycle shaft 35. The arm 11 which carries the cam follower I8 is pivoted at I8 to the bracket 80 depending from the platform I0. Movement of arm 11 is communicated to plunger 8| by the link 82 pivotally connected at its lower end to arm 11 and at its upper end tween the inlet chamber 81A and discharge cha ber 80 is biased to closed position as by the spring 05. The cam 00 for controlling the movements of valve 04 is attached to the one-cycle shaft 85. The bracket 81 extending from the valve casing 81 supports the rocker arm 98 whose upper end supports the cam follower 99 and whose'lower end is adapted to engage and effect movement of the movable valve element 94. The cam 96 may, as indicated by the timing chart, Fig. 7, be constructed to open valve 94 at about the same time that the interior of the cam C is sealed to atmosphere by engagement of its rim by the sealing ring 80, to maintain valve 94 closed for withdrawal of air from the container for at least a substantial portion of the cycle during which the auger 8 is forcing material into the container and to Open valve to eifect discontinuance of suction at suitable time before end of the cycle, for example, somewhat before or after rotation of the auger. is interrupted by disengagement of the members of clutch 28, Fig. 3.

Referring particularly to Fig. 5, the suction head 4 may be detachably secured as by the bolts I00, to thefiange IOI suitably held, as by welding or brazing, to the lower end of the filling tube I.

The main or body portion I02 of the suction head" is provided with an opening or bore I03 in alignment with the tube 1 in effect to form a continuation thereof, and as shown in Fig. 5, the auger 0 may be of length sufficient to extend into open ing or bore I03 which is preferably tapered very closelyto approximate, at its lower or discharge end, the diameter of the feed auger.

The suction port I04 in the under-face of head 4 may, as shown in Fig. 5A, be circular and substantially concentric with the bore I03. The

screen I05. Figs. 5 and 5B, for preventing entry of the filling material into the suction port is held to the collar 83 attached to plunger 8i. The

spring 84 disposed about plunger 8| between collar 83 and the extension 85 of bracket 80 which serves as a guide for the lower end 01 plunger 8i biases the platform I to its uppermost position and determines the maximum pressure between the rim of the container C and the sealing ring 88, of rubber, such as Manhatten #00, or equivalent yielding material, suitably attached to the underface of the suction head 4. Cam [8 may be i so shaped that, as appears from the timing chart Fig. 7, the platform or table I is allowed to rise to its uppermost position during about the first thirty degrees of the cycle of the machine and is returned by cam I0 to its lowermost position during the last thirty degrees of the machine's cycle. As shown in Figs-5 and 6, cam I6 may comprise two segments one directly secured to shaft 35 as by a clamping screw and adjustably secured to the other segment by a bolt and slot connection.

The arrangement for withdrawing air from the interior of container 0 includes hose 5 connecting the suction head 4 to the inlet chamber 01A of the valve housing 81, hose 88 connecting the exhaust chamber 00. of the valve housing to the tank 90, and hose 9i connecting tank 80 to the intake 92 of the suction pump 5. The suction may be regulated by any conventional means exemplified by the pressure control'valve 83; a negative pressure or vacuum corresponding with a column of about 15 inches of yvater has proved satisfactory. 1

The valve 94 controlling communication bein place by the sealing rings I04, I01; as indicated in Fig. 5, the smaller or inner ring I05 may thread into the central opening I03 of the head,

and the outer or larger ring may be held to the body portion I02 by screws I08. The mesh of screen I05 is suitably fine to prevent passage therethrough of the filling; for example a mesh of 200 per inch or finer is suitable for talcum, v

powdered chocolate and the like.

In contrast with prior arrangements in which a charge of powdered filling is dumped into a container open to atmosphere, the filling discharged by auger 0 immediately settles without tendency to float or blow out of the pontainer and densely packs without entrapment of any appreciable amount of air.

When, as desirable, the operations, of filling is removed from platform" I. For that purpose,

the valve housing 81 is provided with a second outlet chamber I09 either in communication with atmosphere or the exhaust IIO of the suction pump 5. The valve III, Fig. 6, which controls communication between ,the outlet chamber I08 and the inlet chamber 88 is biased to closed D0- sition, as by a spring not shown. The cam II2 for controlling the movements of valve III is attached to the one-cycle shaft 35 and during its rotation effects movement of the rocker ,arm 3/ pivotally supported by bracket 51 and having the cam follower II4 mounted upon its upper end iii engagement with, or in the path of, cam H2. The lower end of arm H3 is disposed to engage the stem of the valve I I I.

The cam H2 is so constructed and positioned on shaft 35 that, as shown by the timing chart Fig. 7, the valve III is opened for a brief period after rotation of the auger 9 has been interrupted. Opening of the valve causes an inrush or puff of air which blows the powdered filling clinging to the screen I back into the can C, or equivalent, so ensuring proper weight or quantity of filling in the can and cleaning the screen for proper exhaustion of the container next to be filled in the succeeding cycle of the machine.

Though my arrangement does not involve actual weighing of the charges of filling, the net weights of the successively filled containers nevertheless agree very closely; for example, charges of powderedfilling introduced into a series of containers and intended to have a nominal magnitude of five pounds differ from that magnitude by not more than about one-half ounce, i. e., the accuracy is to within or better; more generally, for the range of from about one-half ounce per charge to ten pounds per charge, the accuracy is within 0.5% for the smaller weights and within one-quarter of an ounce for the larger weights. Furthermore, in practice this high degree of accuracy is obtained when the machine illustrated is operated to fill containers at the rate of about twenty-five to thirty per minute.

To accommodate the machine for containers of somewhat different heights, the suction head 4 may be provided, as shown in Fig. 8, with an adjustable ring II5 whose under face is recessed to receive the sealing ring 86. The ring H5 may be split to permit its'adjustment axially of the suction head when the clamping screw H6 is loosened. Because the material is, as above stated, tightly packed under the combined infiuence of the auger and the vacuum and as between diilerent containers uniformly packed, there is no need to provide for a substantial free space above the filling; consequently a smaller can than usual can be used and the sealing ring H5 set to be only slightly higher than the plane of the lower end of the feeding and packing auger 9.

When the walls of the containers are so thin or are of such material that they would be collapsed by atmospheric pressure during exhaustion of the containers, there may be utilized a modified arrangement, shownin Fig. 9, in which there is provided a sealing member or sleeve III which, when the platform IA is In elevated posi- -tion, defines a second chamber external to the container CI and also subjected'to suction thus to balance the pressures within and without the container CI. The sleeve II! at its upper end closely fits or is sealed against th suction head 4; the lower edge of the sleeve is in alignment with a sealing ring H8, or other suitable sealing member, suitably attached to the platform IA for sealing engagement with'the ring II8 when the platform is raised to the position shown in Fig. 9 for filling of container C I The outer chamber defined by the container CI, sleeve III, suction head 4 and platform IA,

is suitably connected to the suction hose 6 as by the fitting II! which, as shown in Fig. 9, may also provide for connection of the suction port I04 with hose 6.

By slight modification of the platform and of the suction head, Fig. 11, the apparatus may be adapted to fill bags of paper, tin-foil, or like material, including bags of the so-called square or self-opening type shown in Fig. 10.

Referring to Fig. 11, the outer clamping ring I01 of Fig. 5 is replaced by clamping ring I0'lB having a deep annular groove I for reception of the upper part of the bag C2 usually folded after introduction of filling to. close the mouth of the bag. The lower edge of rim I2I of the clamping ring IO'IB co-acts with a sealing ring I22 of rubber or other suitable yielding material to isolate from atmosphere the chamber defined by the interior of the container C2 and the groove I20. The ring I 22 is carried by the channel member I23 which surrounds the container C2 and is supported by the upper ends of the sleeves I24, I25 which are suitably secured at their lower edges to the platform I.

The sleeves I24 and I25, the channel member I23 and theplatform I define a suction chamber I26 which surrounds the container C2. The outer sleeve I24 is peripherally continuous to isolate this chamber from atmosphere whereas the inner sleeve I25 is provided with a multiplicity of perforations I21 through which suction is applied to expand the container C2 and hold it in shape for introduction of filling. The suction chamber I26 is connected toany suitable source of suction, for example the suction pump 5, by the hose 6A and valve 94; preferably, the suction to the outer chamber I26 is controlled by a valve other than valve 94 to provide for supply of suction to chamber I26 before the platform I rises. In either case, the operator need merely drop the bag C2 into the pocket defined by the inner sleeve I25 and then momentarily depresses the pedal 3 to initiate a cycle of the machine. Upon completion of the cycle, the operator lifts the filled bag out of the pocket and replaces it by the empty bag next to be filled.

- In the modification shown in Figs. 12 and 13, suited for filling cans which are substantially oval as well as of other cross-sectional shape, the large sealing disc 88A, of rubber or equivalent, isreceived by a recess in plate I20 suitably fastened to the underface of the main or .body member mm of head 4-. Through the central projecting portion I29 of plate I28 extend the discharge passage I03, forming a continuation of the bore of pipe I from the hopper 2, and the suction ports I04A in communication with suction ports I04 01' head I02A and each covered with a fine screen 105A serving the purpose and having the characteristics of screen I05 of previously described modifications.

With the system shown in Fig. 14, all operations are automatically performed; empty containers C are fed adjacent platform I by any suitable means such as the continuously moving conveyor belt I 30 upon which they are kept in line by guide bars I3I terminating short of platform I.

. The empty containers are in turn pushed onto platform I, or equivalent, into alignment with filling head 4 by the transfer member I32 which reciprocates to and from the position shown in Fig. 14. When moved to the right to that position, member I32 pushes from stop 3A onto platform I an empty container which displaces from .fer member I32 is moved to the left from the position shown in Fig. 14, it permits the row of 350, as by sprockets Ill, I42 and chain I43 and rotating one revolution for each cycle of clutch 63A, A, are also disposed the cam 16 for effecting reciprocation of platform I and the cams 96, H2 for controlling valves 94 and III, all as previously herein described in connection with the modification shown in Figs. 1-7. However, cam 34 of the full automatic system, Fig. 14, is mounted upon another shaft, shaft 35A, driven from the continuously rotating shaft 25 through a second one-cycle clutch I 31 whose driven pawl or dog I38 secured to shaft, 35A is engaged by latch Ill, at the end of each revolution of shaft 35A, and is moved thereby from engagement with the continuously rotating driving member I" of the clutch. These clutch members remain out of engagement until at predetermined time in a revolution of one-cycle shaft 35A, the cam I45 trips latch I39 and so initiates a cycle of shaft 35A during which cam N, as previously described in connection with Figs. 1-7, controls operation of feed auger 9 to force a charge of filling into a container on platform I.

With the same high accuracy heretofore mentioned, the full automatic system of Fig. 14 can minute; correspondingly higher output is obtained when several such fillingunits are combined in a single machine, for example in manner generally similar to that shown in Figs. 5 and 6 of my United States Letters Patent 2,082,567.

For brevity in the appended claims, the term air" includes air and gas or fluid other than air which may have been used for conditionin or treating the interior of the container or for conditioning or treating the filling material.

What I claim is:

1. A filling machine comprising an auger oper- .able;in each cycle of the machine to feed mate- ,rial into a container, means for driving said auger for a fixed fraction of each of successive cycles of the machine and at a speed which is fixed independently of the duration of aforesaid cycles, and means for varying the amounts of filling received by the containers comprising means adjustable to regulate the duration of the machine cycles.

2. A filling machine comprising an auger rotatedin each cycle of the machine to feed powdered material into a container, meansincludthe containers comprising coupled rotating members connected respectively to said rotatable member and a source of power therefor,' and means adjustable to vary the effective diameter of at least one of said members.

4. A filling machine comprising an auger for feeding powdered material into a container, 8. source of power, a clutchbetween said auger and said source of power, a rotatable control member effecting engagement of the'members of said clutch for a predetermined fraction of each cycle of said machine, and means for varying the ratio of the extent of rotation of said auger to the extent of rotation of said control member comprising a variable speed transmission between said source of power and said control member.

' 5. A filling machine comprising an auger for feeding powdered material into a container, at source of power, a clutch between said auger and said source of power, a rotatable control member effecting during a fixed fraction of each revolution thereof engagement of the members 1 fill containers at the rate of about thirty per of successive cycles of the machine, and means sealing member surrounding said passage and coacting with the mouth of the container to isolate the interior thereof from atmosphere during filling, relatively movable sealing members surrounding the container during aforesaid introduction of its filling to define a chamber isolated from atmosphere and from the interior of said container, means for withdrawing air from the container during its reception of filling discharged from "said passage, and means for preventing collapse of the container during aforesaid withdrawal of air therefrom comprising means for reducing the pressure in said chamber.

7. A machine for filling bags comprising apertured wall structure defining a pocket for receiving a bag to be filled, means for applying suction to side wall structure of the bag through said apertured wall structure to hold the bag passage through which the filling is introduced into the container, an auger extending to the discharge end of said passage for forcing said material into said container and contributing to dense packing of said material, one or more suction passages distinct from said first-named passage extending through said member for communication with the interior of the container and there contributing to the packing effect of said auger, and a sealing element surrounding said member and disposed to engage the mouth of the container substantially-above the lower end of said member.

9. Apparatus for filling a container with powdered material comprising a member extending .downwardly into the container and having a passage through which the filling is introduced into the container, an auger extending to the discharge end of said passage for forcing said material into said container and contributing to dense packing of said material, one or more suction passages distinct from said first-named passage extending through said member. for

communication with the interior the container and there contributing to the packing effect of said auger, a sealing element surrounding said member and disposed to engage the mouth of the container, a support for said container, and means for preventing collapse of the container by withdrawal of air therefrom through said passage through which the filling is introduced a into the container, an auger extending to the discharge end of said passage for forcing said material into said container and contributing to dense packing of said material, one or more suction passages distinct from said first-named passage extending through said member for communication with the interior of the container and there contributing to the packing eflfect of said auger, a groove in the lower face of said member for reception of the upper portion of the wall structure of the container, and means for I preventing collapse of the container by withdrawal of air therefrom comprising structure co-operating with said grooved member to define an inner chamber in which said container is disposed, and providing an outer chamber through which suction is applied to the exterior of the container.

11. Apparatus for delivering powdered materialinto a container and densely packing said material in the container by the combined influence of positive feed and vacuum, comprising a filling head co-acting with the mouth of the container to isolate its interior from atmosphere, an auger positively feeding a charge of said material into the container through a passage, in said .head, whose discharge is continuously in free and open communication with said container, said auger extending at leastto the mouth oi said container and thereby positively feeding the charge immediately into said container, automatic means discontinuing feed of the charge into said container by said auger after a predetermined time, and a source of suction in communication with the interior of said con-" tainer through a second passage, in said head, to effect, by the combined influence of said auger and suction, dense in said container.

12. Apparatus for delivering powdered material into a container and densely packing said material in the container by the combined influence of positive feed and vacuum, comprising a filling head co-acting with the mouth of the container to isolate its interior from atmosphere, an auger positively feeding a charge of said material into the container through a passage, in said head, whose discharge is continuously in free and open communication with said con.- tainer, said auger extending at least to the mouth of said container and thereby positively feeding the charge immediately into said container, automatic means discontinuing feed of the charge into said container by said auger after a predetermined time, a source of suction in communication with the interior of said container through a second passage, in said head, to eiIect, by the combined influence of said auger and suction. dense packing of the charge in said container, a screen ion said second passage disposed at substantially the level of the discharge end of said auger, and means for momentarily passing gas in reverse direction through said screen only after feed by said auger has ceased.

EDGAR W. BLEAM.

packing of the charge 

